From Sooooooouuuunnnnnd to song

MTV India is known for its out-of-the-box ideas in TV shows. They are the trend setters and there's no doubt that they have a niche, loyal and loving viewership.
Just as my interest in the idiot box was dwindling, MTV India launched Sound Trippin'.
And whoa! TV viewing for me took a turn for the good.I was impressed by the trailers for this particular show and it defined the word 'difference'. In this age of reality shows and behind the scenes shots, this show stands tall.

The anchor

Its about the journey from sound to song. Sneha Khanwalkar, the anchor is seen travelling to various parts of the country and she records sound bytes to make a song out of it, for each region.

The show brings to light, the fact that each place has its own identity and so far the visual images were cashed in by the producers. So much so that, the visual imagery has reached a point of saturation. Typical of the MTV think-tank they brought out a strategy which is truly run-off-the-mill and here we have this young lady going to beautiful places and recording sounds. Sounds that we like, we've heard before, ignored before, taken for granted and sometimes even considered them as 'noises', this show turns all of that into a beautiful song.

The show is very well planned and even though they use latest technology typical to the musical field, their working is transparent and one can tell exactly how the sound bytes are distinct from one another.

On seeing the work that goes behind it we realize how much hardwork goes into the songs that music directors compose, those that we download for free from the internet or casually listen to their creations on the radio while juggling between a couple of routine tasks.

The 'noise' of the heavy vehicle is recorded for a song!



My favourite sound clip: water drop

 A beautiful concept, beautiful show.It sure does leave a mark! Kudos to MTV!

Hypocritical

As a teen, I had a fancy for Slam Books and I'd get a lot of people to fill it in for me. Friends, relatives, acquaintances would all have to give me their 'autograph'.
It was then, that I first came across the word 'hypocrisy'. People wrote it in the field where they had to list things that they hate. (Now thats a hypocritic line in itself!) At that time I didn't quite understand it. I had to refer to the dictionary several times until I could remember the meaning.

But today, I know the meaning well enough. Thanks to the acts we indulge in, or the rules that are passed, or whatever the 'system' implements.

•  A recent rule( I don't think its a law) has made plastic bags chargeable in the big stores and malls. But what I don't understand is that why do they have to keep up with the plastic anyway? Whether paid for or free, plastic is equally damaging. People who shop for a couple of things or live far away from the point of purchase, have to buy the plastic bag. They cannot carry the things around in their hand sometimes. So unwillingly, they land up buying the plastic! Why can't we be given jute or stiff paper bags, instead?
• By 1 July, 2012 the Government wants all television viewers to buy the DTH services and use Tata Sky or Dish Tv or the like instead of the present cable wires which are bringing TV to our homes, today. This new service is more expensive and elaborate for the understanding of the lower classes. So do they lose the last straw of entertainment which had blessed their lives, so long? To know what they feel, take time out to engage in a conversation about this with your domestic help and you'll know where the anomaly lies!

• We are all afraid of natural calamities and earthquakes are no foreign fear now. On one hand we talk of technology and strategy to construct the buildings so that they do not sway easily. But these technologies are renderred useless when the construction is done on land revived from water bodies. The pre-existent wet-lands do not make the foundation of the building strong enough to survive inspite of the anti-earthquake measure taken. In such a scenario, the technology boils down to a gimmick and does no one any good!

• And the last thing on my mind is the safety of females in Kolkata, or in any city in general. We as citizens know and feel that the unsafety is caused by a few of us and the fear builds on one side of our hearts and the other side knows fully well that something must be done to ensure a safe environment for one and all. Through the day we read and see reports carried out on this issue and talk in a philanthropic tone saying, " Why shouldn't women wear what they like, do as they wish and go out as they please?" But as night falls, the women of our homes are to stay indoors, obeying their dear ones. In most cases, its not an 'order' issued against women in their households, but out of plain concern. However you, me and US are all held back and the predator hunts his prey fearlessly!

Add to the list, as you please I am sure you notice half a dozen such incidents around you, everyday. From those incidents you'll surely find people who can be awarded the following certificate:

Traffic jam in the highway of the mind

Its ironical that I am posting this on my blog which is also part of the online networking circuit, but I guess its all about knowing your limits, drawing the line somewhere and not to over-do things!

Hats off to the people who update their statuses (On Facebook, BBM orWhatsApp; and sometimes all of these!) when they sleep in for 15 more minutes than usual, when they enjoy the weather: they express their joy by typing a new status, when they enter a mall or a movie they check-in as if Facebook were a hostel matron!
This article printed in The Telegraph, Kolkata today is meant for all those whose brain cells are excessively greased with information: useful and useless, necessary and unnecessary, righ and wrong: all the same, they clutter our minds and its best you clear the Recycle Bin in your teeny-weeny sized brain, before its too late!




http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120408/jsp/7days/story_15348360.jsp

Baby Steps

When I started my own blog, I had no mentor in the blogosphere. I would sign in with anticipation and check my pageviews, the audience statistics and make it a point to write as often as possible.And in all this, I was alone. Those were my baby steps.

Supporting Rapture Group, in its period of babbles!


http://rapturegroup.blogspot.in/
They present Ustad Raahat Fateh Ali Khan live in concert on 12 May, 2012 at Music Hall, Detroit, Michigan.

If you are in U.S.A, I suggest this is truly going to be a wonderful experience!

Earth Hour 2012

I don't know whether I was less informed, or that I didn't take the effort to be informed; but I realized that Earth Hour was maintained on 31 March, starting from 8:30 p.m., only when I woke up next morning and read the papers.


I think it's a great idea of preserving the environment. On the one hand, it saves tonnes of units of electricity and on the other side, when we see things in a different light (pun intended!) we realize the value of it.

I Googled Earth Hour and got some wonderful images, I paste them  below for your pleasure. However, it's sad to know Kolkata, or even India, didn't top the search results page.

In today's times, Google's reach is wider than all the newspapers of the world, put together. It's statistically proven, not meant metaphorically. In such times, when India doesnt feature anywhere on the first few pages of Google search results, I think it denotes our ignorance and how disconnected we are from the rest of the world, because we didn't maintain it as stringently as the rest of the world.

Anyway, for the love of the images:



India Gate, Delhi





Hotel Marina Bay Sands, Singapore





Big Ben, London





New York City skyline




The Great Wall of China, China





Empire State Building, New York

A new car has hit the roads and it's tagline says 'It loves you back!'
If we believe that, I don't think there's much difficulty to believe:
"If you love your planet, it will love you back!"